Wrasse love or hate?

[rebecky45]

I got what I thought was a female solar today. They have been chasing each other, and one does not seem dominant over the other. The chasing seems to be done in small circles. They also do this "kissing" behavior as seen in photo. Is this aggression? Or courting?

 

[skinz78]

Nice one, looks just like my female Solar Wrasse, I don't have a male though so I can't say one way or the other.

 

[kes]

never seen this with any saltwater fish before. brings back the memories of my cichlid days, green terror and jack dempsey lol.
hope they can settle down after this initial squabble.

 

[rebecky45]

never seen this with any saltwater fish before. brings back the memories of my cichlid days, green terror and jack dempsey lol.
hope they can settle down after this initial squabble.

I was reminded of my cichlid days too! And yeah...never saw saltwater fish behave this way. I turned the lights off early, and that seems to have helped.

 

[evolved]

Oh that's aggression, and problematic at that. And it's due to the fact that is not a female solorensis, but rather a C. aurantidorsalis.

Female C. solorensis look like:

This aggression might subside with a little time, but it could also get worse. You'll need to be observant, and if they start inflicting any damage to each other, you'll have to pull one.

In the future, using an acclimation box for a few days can usually prevent this. If you have access to one and can catch the new guy, it would definitely be worth a shot still.

Best of luck.

 

[rebecky45]

Thanks for the info. I knew there was some confusion as to what a female solar looked like. Fortunately, all is well this morning. No more chasing, and both are eating well. :D